Flanderwell: AdBlue in the Diesel Tank? Find Your Situation
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: whether your engine has been run since it went in. Anywhere your vehicle is — Dalton Magna, Flanderwell — never start an engine that hasn't run yet. Ring 0333 366 0103 with the key and engine still off. In Flanderwell, that is generally drained and flushed on the spot. Stop the moment it is safe and switch off, if it has already run. Step one remains unchanged, even if the job is bigger.
Below: the situations our technicians see, anywhere around South Yorkshire. Pick yours.
Flanderwell forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
Only at this point, nozzle yet in your hand, it dawns on you that the cap you took off was the wrong one, right at the pump. It could be the Texaco, or the Shell, or another station around Flanderwell.
Put simply: no better place exists to spot it. Still inside that tank, with nothing pulled through: that is where the AdBlue sits.
Do this: stay out of the car, however much the pump wants freeing. Get the staff to lend a hand pushing it to a space, save the bottle, then ring us right there. The equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a live forecourt, so a vehicle that can't be pushed away is cleared right at the petrol pump.
At home in Flanderwell with AdBlue in the diesel tank
Days had passed with the dash light on. A bottle from the shop, emptied in on the drive — and it was just by the recycling that the cap got a second look. Drives near Greenfield Court see it as much as anywhere.
The upshot: zero driving since makes it almost equal to finding it at the pump. Being reluctant to mix, AdBlue settles to the base inside your tank and stays. One night parked alters nothing.
Your move: keys in the house, so no one takes your vehicle anywhere first thing. Then, ring. In Sunnyside or right here in Flanderwell, the drain is done at your driveway. Late-night drains beside a house are no problem: the pumps are low-noise.
Set off with AdBlue in a diesel around Flanderwell?
Topped up, drove away, and before long the engine was turning roughly, blowing smoke, down on power, or lighting up the dash. Possibly it was on Greenfield Gardens, maybe on the way out towards Sheffield, under 10 miles away.
In short: the AdBlue has been pulled into the system. Through the filter, along the pipework, and — the further the distance — deeper into the injection pump and each injector. Every restart, like each mile, pushes it on.
What to do: pull over where it's safe to do so and switch off. Leave by the next junction — not the services further along — if you're on the M18, under 3 miles from Flanderwell. It will not have cleared, so there's no sense restarting to check. Phone us and say how far you travelled.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
You've just had the car for days. Unknown to you, the AdBlue and diesel inlets are side by side here — not like your own car, which has none or keeps it in another spot. Across South Yorkshire, no one is immune.
In short: an extra step on top of the situations above, which depend on if it's run. Many hire and company agreements want the owner to approve work on the car.
Your move: hire firm or your fleet manager to begin with, us second, since sorting it beforehand cuts time. If you are stranded in the car park at Rotherham Central, or by The Blessed Trinity, while you wait for an answer, leave the vehicle off.
Flanderwell: unsure whether it was AdBlue in the diesel tank?
"I think so" is sometimes the most honest answer there is. What cap was taken off, you can't say; but the bottle feels lighter than expected, and a whiff of ammonia lingers by the filler. A hurried top-up by the gates of Flanderwell Primary School, or a visit to a friend in Bramley: either fit.
Meaning? Spills outside the inlet don't touch your engine at all. Once it's inside your diesel tank, though, it does. You cannot tell which by turning the ignition, and doing so would suck in any AdBlue that is in the tank.
What to do: treat it as if it was put in. Don't crank it. Tell us what you noticed on your phone. A clear tank checked counts as a better outcome than an already-run one drained.
The common ground in each Flanderwell AdBlue drain
No matter the case, one opening is used. Filling station, driveway, The Brush and Easel's car park or a road by Wickerley Community Centre and Library — the van comes to your car, and three answers come next: which fluid, which amount, and if it ran. Over the phone, ahead of dispatch, you are told the price, and those answers decide the job too.
AdBlue crystallises and eats at some metals used in fuel systems, and so it does not rinse out on its own; that is why a full flush, after this drain, matters far more with AdBlue than with petrol. The filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and the car is tested. If your motor hasn't run, most jobs take about half an hour once we are there.
Lastly, our engineers fire it up. Our check that it runs properly on fresh diesel comes before our technicians head off. When it's spotted soon, the vehicle very seldom has lasting damage, and the entire job happens where it is. For your insurer: the engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, no money upfront. Worth knowing: lots of insurers offer misfuelling cover, so a quick look at your policy as we travel pays.
About Flanderwell itself
Flanderwell is a village in South Yorkshire, situated on the riverside at an elevation of 143 metres, with semi-detached housing being the predominant type of accommodation. Flanderwell lies approximately 8 miles from Sheffield, and is close to nearby places such as Sunnyside, Wickersley, and Listerdale. Flanderwell has a population of around 4336 people, and is located in a region that is characterised by its industrial heritage and natural beauty. Flanderwell is also relatively distant from London, being around 141 miles away.
Flanderwell and South Yorkshire: AdBlue drains across the area
As a village, Flanderwell has the same vans as the surrounding towns — Listerdale, Wickersley — right through S postcodes. Quickest of all: a S66 2 postcode for your location.
Whether the car is on a lay-by on the way to Flanderwell Park or in a car park in the middle of Flanderwell, it doesn't need to shift. Where it sits, that's where it is drained. Phone and ask rather than guess if you're by Wickersley Methodist Church, near a border, or anywhere awkward to explain.
The one-line version
Unstarted? Keep the car that way and ring. Whatever case fits, Petrol in Diesel handles from there on 0333 366 0103, throughout South Yorkshire and in Flanderwell — once you pull over, turn off then phone, if it's run.